Chapter 3 #2
“It is,” Aleck agreed. He was curious about her friend’s situation, but Aleck knew he only had a little bit of time to talk to her tonight. He wanted to know more about her, not her friends. “You grew up on the East Coast?”
“Yeah. Richmond, Virginia, actually. I went to Virginia Tech, then got that job in Pittsburgh.”
“Any siblings?”
“Nope. I’m an only child. My parents are divorced but still friends, weirdly. They were one of those couples that had a whole parenting plan. I spent weekends with my dad and was with Mom during the week.”
“That had to suck,” Aleck said.
Kenna shrugged. “Not really. As I said, my parents were friends. They didn’t fight, and I didn’t think much about my situation until I was in middle school and realized it wasn’t really normal.
My dad got remarried, and I really like my stepmother.
She’s very different from my mom, which is probably why she and my dad’s relationship works so well. ”
“Did your mom ever get remarried?” Aleck asked.
“Nope. But that doesn’t mean she doesn’t date. She always made sure I was well taken care of, but she loved having her weekends free so she could hang out with her friends and boyfriends.”
“She sounds…interesting,” Aleck said.
Kenna smiled. “She is.”
“And your folks are all right with you being out here?” he asked.
Kenna’s brow furrowed. “What do you mean?”
“Well, it sounds like you had a stable job, then you left to come out here to Hawaii without a plan and are now only a waitress.”
“They want me to be happy,” Kenna said, the friendliness in her tone gone. “And being here makes me happy, so yeah, they’re all right with it. My mom visits every few months and my dad’s been here a few times too. But it doesn’t sound as if you’re all that impressed with me or my job.”
Aleck blinked and realized she was offended by his questions. And no wonder. “Shit, it’s my turn to apologize now. I didn’t mean to disparage what you do.”
Kenna glanced at the water without responding, and he knew he needed to dig himself out of the hole he was in.
“Honestly. That was a shitty thing to say. I just know my parents at first weren’t all that thrilled about me being stationed out here in Hawaii.
They complained that it was too far away.
They’ve come to appreciate me being out here, though.
They come visit all the time, but I’m just a convenient excuse.
They see me for like three hours, then spend the rest of the week on the beach and being tourists. ”
Aleck was relieved to see Kenna’s lips twitch.
Taking a chance, and hoping like hell it wouldn’t backfire, Aleck reached over and took her hand in his.
He ran his thumb over her knuckles, once again noticing how silky smooth her skin was.
“I’m sorry for being insensitive,” he said softly.
“Most people I’ve met are always trying to work their way up the corporate ladder.
Even in the Navy. It’s all about rank and moving upward. ”
Kenna didn’t yank her hand out of his grip, which Aleck appreciated. She stared at him for a long moment before saying, “You’re a snob.”
Aleck blinked. Was he?
Yeah…he probably was.
“I mean, you’re cute, so you have that going for you though.
” Kenna smiled. “I know being a waitress isn’t what most people aspire to do with their lives.
But I had that cushy accounting job, and I hated it.
I felt hemmed in. If I had continued to work there, it would’ve smothered me.
I might not be making a million dollars a year, but I’m happy.
I meet all sorts of interesting people. I get to spend time at the beach during the day and I’m not trapped in a cubicle, staring at a computer. ”
Aleck felt horrible. He was a snob. He’d never considered that someone who worked as a waitress might want to do so. Might actually like it.
“Do you like your job?” she asked.
“Yes.” He didn’t even hesitate.
“Even though you could die? That you could be shot and no one would ever know the circumstances behind it? Even though you can’t really talk about what you do?
I’m just assuming that’s the case, by the way.
I don’t know for sure. Some people would look at you and think you’re crazy.
Why would you want to put yourself in danger for people you don’t even know?
And while the world isn’t like it used to be—most people appreciate our soldiers and what you do—there are those who still think you’re the devil incarnate, that you enjoy killing people. And yet…you still do what you do.”
“Point made,” he said quietly.
“I just…it frustrates me that people look down on me because of my job,” Kenna said.
“There are some shitty parts of being a waitress, for sure. My feet always hurt at the end of the night, I have to deal with entitled people who can’t understand why they have to wait longer than two-point-three minutes for their food.
They treat me like a servant, give me shitty tips or no tips at all.
I’ve been yelled at for refusing to serve alcohol to someone who’s obviously already had enough, screamed at because their food wasn’t to their liking, and even spit on.
“But you know what? The good outweighs the bad. Just as I’m assuming it does for you.
I don’t save lives—well, I take that back.
I have saved two lives…one was a kid who was choking and the other was a man who’d had a heart attack, and I did CPR until the paramedics got there.
But anyway, my job might not be at the top of the importance scale, but I work damn hard, and like I said… the good outweighs the bad.”
Kenna paused for a deep breath. “And now you’re probably regretting coming tonight.”
“No,” Aleck told her. “Actually, I’m even more impressed. You’re pretty damn amazing.”
“Yeah,” she said with a short laugh. “I’ve chastised you for feeling the way I’m sure most people do, have ignored you because I’ve been working, and kinda insulted your own job—which, by the way, is cool, and I want to know everything about it.”
“You’re real,” Aleck told her. “You have no idea how refreshing that is. You rightfully called me on my bullshit, you’re obviously smart, you’re independent, and it’s more than obvious how much the people you work with like you.
All that adds up to someone I really want to get to know better.
If you can forgive me for being an ass.”
Kenna smiled. “You’re a guy,” she said with a shrug.
Aleck laughed. “I am,” he agreed. “But we’re not all assholes. At least not all the time.”
“I’m thirty years old, Marshall,” Kenna said.
“I probably say what I’m thinking more than I should.
I don’t have the patience to deal with angst in a relationship…
friendship or otherwise. I am who I am, and I want to be around other people who are just as honest. I can’t stand secrets and subterfuge.
I’m probably screwing everything up here and jumping the gun, but… I like you.”
“I like you too,” Aleck said immediately. “And I want to see you again.”
“Me too,” Kenna agreed.
They smiled at each other.
“I do work the dinner shift a lot though,” she warned him.
“But not every night.”
“No, not every night.”
“I can work with that,” Aleck told her. “I work during the day. Meetings, training, and there will be times I’ll be deployed for indeterminate periods. But I think you’re worth any effort it takes to work around both our schedules, Kenna.”
She smiled at him. “I’ve got enough seniority here that I can pretty much pick which shifts I want…although I do have to plan ahead.”
“Great,” Aleck said. He was more than aware he was still holding her hand. He hadn’t really been a hand-holder in the past. But with Kenna, the connection felt…good. Especially because he was more than aware he’d almost fucked up.
“Can you see the fireworks the Hilton Hawaiian Village sets off on Friday nights from here?” he asked, steering their conversation back toward a more neutral topic.
“Well, not from the restaurant, no. But if you walk a bit down the beach and sit on the breakwater wall down that way,” she said, pointing down the beach toward the Hilton’s large hotel complex, “you can,” Kenna said. “Is it bad for me to admit that the fireworks don’t do anything for me anymore?”
Aleck chuckled. “Nope. Fireworks aren’t my thing either.”
“Oh, because of PTSD?” Kenna asked in concern.
“No. I mean, that doesn’t help, but we had a dog back home who hated thunder and fireworks.
Like, they’d both totally traumatize him.
So around the Fourth of July, we had to sedate him in order to help him get through the night, as well as the week before and after.
Unfortunately, we had neighbors who bought a shitload of fireworks and would set them off every night. It was awful.”
“Aw, what kind of dog?”
“Doberman.”
Kenna tried not to laugh.
“Yeah, Maximus wasn’t exactly the best guard dog,” Aleck said with a grin. “He would lick someone to death rather than bite them if they broke in.”
“I miss having a pet,” Kenna said. “My dad and stepmom had cats.”
“You could get one,” Aleck suggested.
“My apartment complex doesn’t allow them,” Kenna said simply.
Immediately, Aleck thought about his own place. He had no idea if pets were allowed or not, but he had a feeling if he wanted to get a dog or a cat, he’d be allowed. Living in the penthouse had its perks.
And that thought was how he knew for sure that Kenna was different.
He’d never, ever contemplated getting a pet because of a woman before. His schedule was definitely not conducive to having a dog. A cat…maybe. If he could find someone to check on it while he was deployed.
“Am I allowed to ask how you and your friends got your…unusual names?” Kenna asked.